


Homecoming

by MessOfCurls



Series: Wax and Wane [12]
Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Absent Parents, Anal, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, Bromance, Bromance to Romance, Climbing Class, College, Coming Out, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Gratuitous Smut, Hand Jobs, Lemon, Loud Sex, M/M, Making Out, Nicknames, Oral Sex, Pre-Game(s), Quiet Sex, Role Reversal, Sibling Bonding, Siblings, Smut, Washington fluff is my jam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-10
Updated: 2016-01-10
Packaged: 2018-05-13 01:45:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5689828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MessOfCurls/pseuds/MessOfCurls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chris and Josh return home from college to tell their families that they're seeing each other. It turns out Josh <i>really</i> likes having a boyfriend.</p><p>(see tags)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Homecoming

**Author's Note:**

> Song rec:  
> Every Other Freckle - Alt-J

Restless fingers tapped an irregular rhythm against the door armrest.

Snow banks and tall pines slowly gave way to grey stretches of highway. Passing cars and unremarkable scenery were made duller by the cloudy sky beyond the streaked car window. But at least the rain had finally let up. There was that, he supposed. 

“Relax, dude.”

Between Chris’s driving, skipping breakfast and the prospect of seeing his family, Josh couldn’t help feeling kinda nauseous. They were pretty close to home now. Maybe half an hour or so if they didn’t hit traffic. He’d come back home on his own from college before, but this time was different. Last time he’d caught the long coach home for an uneventful weekend with his parents, but that was a while ago, back before his situation had changed.

“They're not gonna care. Hannah and Beth already--”

“I know.” It was said too abruptly. He sensed it as soon as he said it and corrected himself with a sigh. “Yeah, I know.”

“Then relax, J. Please.”

“I keep telling you, I'm relaxed.” Josh leaned back in the passenger seat and pressed the sole of his boot against the glove box, managing a smile, “See?”

Chris glanced over at the brunette and chuckled, “Yeah, bro. I can see that.” The soft smile remained as he turned to Josh, leaning across to hold his arm. “J, trust me, they're--”

“The wheel! Jesus… _dude_...”

“Okay, okay.” Chris obliged, his hands returning to the ten and two position. After a while with only the radio and Chris’s unusually restrained humming keeping them company, his hand found Josh's. Keeping his eyes obediently on the road and his other hand firmly on the wheel, he squeezed it softly, meeting no resistance. “It's gonna be okay. I promise.”

~*~

Despite Chris's reassurance, the loose arrangement of nerves bubbling in Josh's stomach failed to subside as they pulled up outside the Washington homestead. It looked dauntingly large. Unnervingly so. 

“You ready?”

Josh nodded pensively, and then broke into a smile, mainly for Chris's benefit. However, when he slammed the car door shut and caught sight of two familiar figures emerging from the house, approaching him at a pace, his face lit up of its own accord.

“Hey, Jah-wah.” Beth said with a teasing smile as she and her twin hurried to him, arms outstretched in greeting.

At this - the dusting off of an ancient nickname, back from a time when proper names were too complex for childish mouths - his smile broadened into a genuine grin, affection filling him up. “How are my favourite ladies?”

Josh pulled the pair into a tight hug and felt instantly better for it. It was so good to finally see them in the flesh after months of conversations limited to a snatched half hour here and there, reliant on a temperamental internet connection and confined to a laptop screen.

Another slammed car door, swiftly followed by an exaggerated cough, begged for their attention. The three siblings turned as one to see the blonde leaning against the car with his arms crossed. “You wanna leave some for me or…?”

The girls greeted Chris with hugs of their own before standing back to exchange glances, unasked questions dancing in their eyes. “So…?”

“What?” Chris asked, all innocent and light, “I’m just dropping my boyfriend off at his parent’s house. No big deal.” He shrugged nonchalantly as his arm slipped casually around Josh's shoulders, gently pulling the brunette up against his side.

“Come on, man.” Josh protested self-consciously, looking away, but he made no attempt to extricate himself from Chris’s hold on him.

The twins were positively beaming now. “You _guys_.” Hannah all but squealed, biting her lip.

“Stop that...” Josh warned, but there was no disguising the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“Well.” Beth said, reigning in her grin to a soft smile while Hannah composed herself, “We’re very happy for you.”

“Yeah… me too.” Josh said with a modest shrug.

“Way to show some enthusiasm, J.”

At this, he looked up at Chris and couldn’t help but mirror the smile he found there.

His sisters were the first to know. Josh hadn’t planned or rehearsed it, unlike this time around. The admission just sort of happened. He couldn’t even remember what they’d been talking about at the time. The siblings had been in their respective dorm rooms, separated by hundreds of miles but united by a chat window. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly what had prompted him to tell them, but he remembered the way their faces had changed, not quite believing him at first. Or was it that they hadn’t believed he’d actually said it? Then the hysterics came, forcing him to mute them for a while until they calmed down. Though the rest of the conversation was hazy at best, the thing that stuck with him was what Bee said after he'd confessed that he and Chris were seeing each other, the four words finding a warm place in his chest.

 _Of_ course _you are._

They were the reason he’d been able to talk himself into coming home. He was nervous, yes, but he felt more self-assured clinging to that memory.

“You’re early.” Hannah said checking the time on her phone. “Mom said you'd be here after two.”

“Chris drove.” Josh replied, and the statement was more than enough explanation for the now nodding twins. Accidentally running red lights and taking a series of ‘shortcuts’ that defied the sat nav’s instructions because _someone_ knew better helped them make some headway, though Josh hadn’t fully appreciated it at the time. He’d been too busy wondering whether or not suing Chris for whiplash would be a good idea.

“Quit ragging on my driving, bro. I think you’ll find I know some _pretty sweet_ manoeuvres.”

“Yeah, okay.” Josh smirked. Again he was met with that easy smile that bolstered his confidence.

Looking up at the house, his gaze trailed to the driveway. The soccer-mom-mobile was parked up, but his dad’s car was conspicuously absent. He was probably out. They were early, after all. “Is dad home?”

“...Dad’s not coming home till Monday. Work.” Hannah admitted after an awkward pause, eager to get the news out of the way. Catching sight of the disappointment marking her brother’s brow, she added, “But mom’s in the yard. Are you guys coming in?” It was an open invitation.

Putting his feelings regarding his father’s absence to one side, Josh glanced over at Chris and the two men shared a look. They both knew the plan: Chris would head home to spend some time with his parents, Josh would do the same, and then they’d meet up later. But Chris still gave Josh an opportunity to change his mind. Prompted by a slight nod from the older man, Chris smiled at the twins. “My folks’ve been bugging me all week about heading over. I’ll come by later though.” An easy silence opened up before he turned to Josh. “Your bag.”

The girls talked among themselves while Chris and Josh went to the back of the old rental, the trunk opening with a metallic squeal. Handing Josh his bag, Chris leaned in a little closer, keeping out of earshot of the twins, “Are you sure you don’t want me to come in? It’s cool if you want me to.”

“Nah, it’s okay.” Josh took the bag, shaking his head as the trunk thunked shut. “See you later though?”

“Yeah, sure.” Chris replied through an encouraging smile, kissing him on the forehead.

Some kind of indefinable, stifled noise came from Josh's left, where they’d garnered the twins’ attention. Beth’s hand was covering her mouth while Hannah wore the glassy-eyed expression of a small child who’d just been handed a kitten.

If Josh seemed awkward before, it was nothing compared to how he looked now, scratching the back of his neck and looking down at his feet. He didn’t mind PDAs, but there was a big difference between their college campus and his parent’s driveway. Sensing his discomfort, Chris hesitated, then forwent the usual hug in favour of a soft, friendly punch to Josh’s arm. The brunette looked up at him, unimpressed and amused in equal measure, “Really, dude?”

Raised eyebrows, a shrug and stifled mirth were the only reply Josh received before Chris retreated to the driver’s side, grinning like an idiot as he left Josh alone behind the car. The window rolled down as he turned the key in the ignition, bringing the radio back to life. 

“Always a pleasure.” The farewell came over the revving of the engine and the tinny tunes coming from the radio as Chris turned up the volume from sedate to a level bordering on obnoxious. He mimed a phone with his hand, holding it beside his head as he mouthed the words ‘call me’ to Josh.

“Yup…” Josh replied tightly, giving him a short, lack lustre wave in response. In the wake of the blonde’s departure, Josh slung his bag over his shoulder and, with a little reluctance, rejoined his sisters. They were both smiling at him, or was that smirking? Either way, they looked hard pushed to keep from giggling.

“Josh…”

“Not. A word.”

~*~

Small talk was made. Classes, new friends, life back home. Even things as mundane as the seemingly endless snow were all fair topics of conversation. But Josh barely registered a word of it. His mind was elsewhere, running through the lines of a conversation yet to be had. Finally, after every other avenue was exhausted, he worked up the nerve to begin his script.

“There’s uh.. there’s something I wanna talk to you about.” When concern blossomed fresh and vivid on his mother’s face, he was quick to reassure her, “Nothing bad, don’t worry.” 

Her instinctive reaction was understandable when he was so often the bearer or cause of bad news. Throwing a glance in his sisters’ direction, the twins took their cue to leave, but he could sense them there, hovering unseen at the top of the stairs. Regardless, he took a deep breath and began. “So…”

As he delivered his announcement, awkwardly reciting the mental notes he’d made as his fingers played with the cuff of his sweater, the worry in his mother’s eyes gradually lessened until it had completely gone, replaced by a warm understanding and marked by a hint of mild surprise. When he trailed off to silence, gaze falling to the floor, he heard a sniff.

“Oh, Josh... That’s wonderful news.”

“Really?” He looked up doubtfully.

“Of _course_ it is, Jellybean.”

If her words didn’t convince him, the hug he found himself pulled into was more than enough to confirm it. Usually he’d be embarrassed by such lavish displays of affection, but this time he hugged back, letting her squeeze him tight until he was abruptly released. His mother dabbed at damp eyes as something important occurred to her, “Does Jackie know?”

“I guess if she doesn’t yet then she will soon. He’s over there now, so.” It was only now that he could see his mother’s reaction at arm’s length that he allowed himself to relax.

“I should call her.” she muttered to herself distractedly.

“Mom, maybe let Chris talk to her first?” he held her by the shoulders and smiled down at her, “Yeah?”

She nodded, then looked him in the eyes and held his cheeks. Her head tilted to one side as she sighed, “Oh, _Josh_.”

“Mom… come on.”

“Okay, I’m sorry. It’s just…” undecided on how to finish her sentence, she kissed him on the cheek before releasing him. “How long?”

Of course there would be follow up questions. He’d anticipated them. But now that he was being asked, his head was in a muddle. “Not long. College.”

“Really?” She sounded sceptical.

“Yeah… Why?”

“Nothing, angel.”

Standing there with her beaming up at him, Josh began to fully appreciate how lucky he was. Sure, there were things he’d change in his life, like his health and some of the darker moments that blemished his past, but they didn’t seem to matter right now. Even his father’s absence - a trend they’d become used to in recent years - couldn’t cast a shadow on what looked like a pretty perfect picture. Chris was right: why the hell had he worried about any of this?

The ringing phone cut the moment short. A few brisk paces later and his mom was in the kitchen with the handset held to her ear. “Hello?” her eyes lit up as the caller announced themselves. “Oh, Jackie! Have you spoken… yes?” She was slowly pacing the kitchen tiles, Josh’s presence secondary to the conversation at hand, “And you… I _know_. We just… yes, I know.”

“Can we come down now, please?” The unseen voice came down to him from the floor above.

“Yeah.” Josh called back through a grateful smile while he watched his mother ramble on. A moment later, two sets of arms encircled him.

~*~

“One for the road, Jellybean?”

“Funny. You're a funny guy.”

Chris was still smirking as he kissed Josh on the cheek, wrapping his arm - previously spread out along the back of the sofa - around the older man.

When Chris returned after dinner with ‘aunt’ Jackie ( _that_ was a weird nickname now) in tow, Josh’s mother was relentless. Though they’d grown up together, the two women still somehow managed to find a few embarrassing stories about their sons that the other hadn’t heard, eliciting groans and mirth in equal measure, particularly from the twins who sat there as unscathed spectators. When it began to get late, Chris's mom went home and his own retired for the night. Hannah and Beth stayed up with them for a while before deeming it appropriate to ‘leave the two lovebirds alone’. So here they were, basking in the fading light of a day that far exceeded their expectations, relaxing on the couch just like old times.

It had been easy. Sure, it was still strange, but a good kind of strange; sitting there in the living room surrounded by everyone with Chris beside him, his arm lazily slung over his shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world. Hell, it _was_ the most natural thing. Part of him had surely always known that.

Chris pushed up from the couch cushions.

So... Now this was a thing. A real thing. They'd skirted around it at first, and then subtly slipped it into conversation, testing the waters with the term. And now it was sort of official, not only in their eyes, but as far as their families were concerned, too.

_Boyfriend._

It was still going to take some getting used to. Still weird, to be honest.

_My boyfriend is walking across the room._

Josh smiled to himself while he watched the blonde from afar.

_My boyfriend is in the kitchen._

“What d’you want?” Chris asked, opening the fridge.

_My boyfriend is asking me a question. Wait…_

“Beer’s good, man.” he replied distractedly as Chris ducked out of view behind the breakfast bar to rummage through the lower shelves.

_My boyfriend is getting me a beer._

“No dice.”

_...or not._

“There's some… green stuff? Some OJ and...” he turned to Josh with a clear bottle in his hand, “Since when does your mom drink vodka?”

A small grimace coloured Josh’s response, “Pretty sure there are some beers left.”

Chris returned his attention to the fridge without a grumble and slipped the unwanted bottle back in place.

_My boyfriend._

Clinking bottles and soft socks camouflaged decided footsteps.

“Dude, seriously, I think you’re out of-- wait.” After a little more digging, Chris straightened up with two bottles of beer in hand and turned to hold them up triumphantly. Instead he nearly jumped. “Woah…”

Josh was just a pace away, having crept silently into the kitchen, his gaze never leaving the younger man. They’d stood like this a million times before - making a mess or seeking out a midnight snack - but it was somehow different now.

Sitting on the couch beside Chris earlier, looking sidelong at him as he cracked a joke that filled the busy room with laughter, Josh hadn’t been able to take his eyes off him. He’d looked flawless in that moment, everything about him so effortless, so easy. Kinda like he did right now. 

Yeah, Chris was the one thing in his troubled life that was actually easy. Always had been. Josh wondered how he was only just realising that.

Affection welled up inside him, and still he didn't say a word, perhaps unable to find any that could sum up exactly what he felt right then.

“J?” Chris held out a bottle to him.

Without a word, Josh slowly closed the space between them, holding the other man’s face in possessive hands as he tilted his head upward to meet his lips. Chris only just managed to place one of the bottles on the counter behind him as Josh’s advances ushered him back against it, the cold granite digging into his backside. When the initial surprise wore off, Chris wasted no time gently pulling Josh close, wrapping his freed up arm around the brunette's waist.

_My boyfriend’s a great kisser._

Josh was first to pull away, leaving Chris to look down at him with a lopsided smile, surprised but pleasantly so. “What was that for? M’not complaining or anything...” he placed the other beer on the counter.

He shrugged, “...You make me happy. That’s all.”

It was true.

“Well, obviously.” Chris looked pretty pleased with himself, “But what awesome thing have I done this time to deserve that? There are so many to choose from, I know.”

Chris’s query went ignored as dark green eyes peered up at him, lit by unspoken thoughts, which Josh managed to sum up in one word. It was more of a statement than a question. “Sleepover?”

The implications of such a seemingly innocent suggestion weren’t lost on the blonde. Chris glanced past him to the stairs. They were still alone.

“Shall I ask my mom to call your mom, see if it’s okay?” Josh asked with a wry smile.

Chris chuckled softly at that. “Don't bring moms into this…” Again he glanced at the stairs before his contemplative gaze settled on Josh. Fridge-cool hands snaked beneath layers of shirt material to smooth against the small of Josh’s back, stroking idle patterns across his skin as he mulled it over. “There's no lock on your door.”

It seemed that Chris was being practical for once, but Josh shrugged and edged closer, that small detail of little concern. Right now he felt fearless, the quiet anxiety he’d been harbouring all day gone in the wake of overwhelming acceptance. 

Chris’s expression was changing. Josh saw it, noticing the not-so subtle hint of longing in the other man’s eyes. The blonde’s smile was there, but it differed from his everyday, easy-going grin. There was tension in it, a little heat marking the upturn of his lips. Yeah, he knew that look. Chris wouldn’t need much more convincing, but it couldn’t hurt to make sure, right?

Persuasive fingers trailed a path along the waistband of Chris’s jeans, edging their way forward till they were hooked through a denim belt loop, anchoring him in place. His other hand ran light and tentative through blonde hair, mussing it up a little, but Chris didn't seem to mind. The slightest tilt of Josh's head accompanied the upward glance and his softly murmured confession. “I wanna mess you up.” his lips formed a surreptitious smile, “Just a bit.”

And there they were: words. Maybe they weren't exactly the ones he'd meant to say originally - perhaps not quite as deep or meaningful as he'd intended - but they were certainly honest enough with Chris this close.

A potent mixture of surprise and need was there, stark on the other man’s face, but Chris quickly recovered. “...Yeah?”

He nodded.

Chris feigned indifference and hummed something akin to exaggerated contemplation, but the act didn’t last long, and it was Chris who pulled him close this time, kissing him while his hands slid down into the back pockets of Josh's jeans, gently urging the brunette against him.

_My boyfriend has a hard on._

A hand sliding up through his hair made Josh's breath catch and wiped the smirk away. Leaving just enough space between them for Chris to see the unasked question in his eyes, Josh looked up at him expectantly. 

“Yeah…” Chris’s smile broadened and his grip on Josh tightened momentarily. “I’m... Yeah. I'm down for a sleepover.”

Drinks forgotten, Josh led him upstairs, the pair padding that well-travelled path they’d walked together so many times before on smaller feet. A flick of the light switch dealt with the hall lights and they left the darkness behind.

~*~

Alone in Josh's room, lit by the warm glow of a desk lamp, Chris let himself be pushed up against the door, putting up no resistance as Josh kissed him, hands tugging at his sweater. Part of him wanted to tell Josh to slow down, that there was no chance in hell he was going anywhere, but seeing him worked up like this - all eager hands and hungry mouth - made him think better of it. He couldn’t help feeling lucky to be part of these increasingly more frequent moments; the ones when Josh was so very much present with him, free of distractions and utterly unburdened, and he for some inexplicable reason the sole focus of the brunette’s attention. Yeah, it was hard not to get into it when J was like this, turning him on so much inside his clothes he could barely think straight. 

His sweater muffled laughter as Josh battled to pull it up over his head. When he finally emerged back in the room, the offending item was promptly discarded, leaving his glasses askew and his hair well and truly ruined, but it was a small price to pay when Josh was laughing too; a soft, wonderful sound that Chris almost wished had lasted a little longer before the brunette kissed him again. Impatient fingers worked at the buttons of his shirt and Chris followed suit, somehow managing to avoid tangling up their arms as he tried to keep up with him.

“Why d’you wear so much?” Josh murmured the complaint against his lips, but it seemed he wasn’t looking for an answer. He certainly wasn’t giving him much of a chance to speak, anyway. But Chris didn’t care at all. This… He was just so into it.

When Josh slid his hand between them, running it slowly over strained denim, Chris's eyes closed with a small exhale. Teeth nipped lightly at his bottom lip as Josh's other hand attempted to work loose his fly.

Then Josh stopped abruptly, frozen in place.

They’d both heard it, muffled yet definite through the wall: voices deep in conversation, the words unintelligible but undeniably there. He’d sort of assumed that the twins had gone to bed, much like Josh had if his apparent surprise was anything to go by, but by the sound of it they were very much awake in Beth’s room next door. Josh’s eyes danced as he wordlessly ran through their options.

“ _Dude_ …” Chris said in a loud whisper. Muted laughter trembled the space between them, shared smiles carrying just a hint of desperation.

“Okay, I got this.” Josh said finally, nodding to himself. He gestured to the freshly made bed with a plan in mind. “Don’t go anywhere.”

Chris smiled incredulously at the request as he sank down onto the blanket and placed his glasses on the nightstand, “J, come on.”

Josh went to his desk and wiggled the mouse, and the monitors lit up as his computer came back to life. A few clicks later, he was scrolling through a library of music. 

Chris leaned back with his palms pressed against the bedding. Sitting there in one of their old haunts - his body seeming large on the single bed - felt both familiar and strangely new. Looking around the setting of pillow forts, movie nights and some of the sadder times, it was difficult to believe that one small space could be home to so many memories. Childhood toys and hobbies had gradually been cleared away, making room for the evolving interests of their teenage years. But the bare bones were there. The bed was the same, swathed in muted colours rather than childish patterns, granted. A few of the older posters had survived the transformation, lost among more recent additions, stuck to walls that had witnessed everything.

And there in the middle of it all was Josh, the one constant, but even he had somewhat changed. Not just physically - Chris a witness to the inevitable changes time made to his aging body, transforming gangly limbs and awkward shapes into a young man who finally seemed happy in his own skin - but maybe even mentally, too. 

Josh was rummaging through his closet with his back to Chris. He finally emerged with a battered hockey stick in hand, his search a success. After a few failed attempts, he managed to wedge the length of wood between the door handle and the side of his dresser, but it took some effort to do it quietly. Chris thought to make a joke, but when Josh’s sheepish expression gave way to that warm look reserved just for him, enhanced by the dim light and seen so many times within the walls of their shared territory miles away from home, whatever he’d thought to say didn’t seem quite so funny anymore. Music played indistinctly through the PC speakers, loud enough to afford them some privacy, but hopefully not enough to disturb their neighbours. 

Josh slipped his sweater up over his head, affording Chris the briefest inadvertent flash of midriff before he casually dropped it on the floor. His attention returning to the blonde, Josh leaned down to better be heard and murmured through a deprecatory smile, “It’ll do, right?”

Chris looked up at Josh, standing by his feet just out of reach. Sitting up, Chris ran his hands down the brunette’s thighs.

_It’ll do?_

‘Locked’ in a room with Josh Washington, who was shedding clothes like it was no big deal and looking back at him with _that_ look in his eyes? ‘It’ll do’ was massively underselling it.

“I guess it’s gonna have to.” he joked weakly, taking Josh by the hands.

The words gave way to an unhurried string of kisses that slowly lowered Chris down against the mattress. His legs hung off the bed, bare feet skimming the carpet as Josh joined him, pressing the blonde beneath him. Josh was taking his time now, the urgency that had him fumbling with clothes at the door reduced to a simmer, but it was still there, evident in the restless way his body slowly moved against his own, stoking fires that made the room seem too warm. A long while passed lost to the simple pleasure of being wrapped up in each other’s affections, their bodies a mess of shifting limbs and gentle wandering hands as a warm mouth claimed his own.

Though Chris had been the one to set them down this path - the one where friendship became something very else - he’d always tried to let Josh take the lead, his desire to do right by the other man taking precedence over his own urges. The progression from anything more than the warm exchange of kisses hadn't been Chris's to dictate, but he’d been more than enthusiastic reciprocating when the brunette had taken that step for them. Josh had been reserved at first, back what seemed like a lifetime ago. Not timid, exactly, just… cautious. Holding back, perhaps. They were both guilty of it if Chris was honest, neither of them wanting to risk ruining a good thing. An element of that reservation still lingered at times, but the last few months had done wonders for them both, slowly dispelling hesitance in favour of conviction. 

It was with that same confidence that Josh looked down at him now, his body a welcome weight upon him. When he smiled - his breath warm, soft and uneven against Chris's lips, dark eyes whispering wicked thoughts - Chris felt a surge of affection and a baser ache flare up inside him. Pulling Josh against him, he lifted his head off the bed to meet his lips again, but it seemed that Josh had other ideas. He pulled away and sat back until he was kneeling upright on the bed, straddling Chris's legs while he shrugged off his button up shirt, eyes raking over the blonde beneath him all the while. Propping himself up on his elbows, Chris watched as Josh turned his attention to his clothes next, his hands resting on the younger man’s stomach. Chris reached out to touch him, but his hand was swatted away. Deft fingers made short work of the button fastening Chris’s jeans before they paused, hovering just shy of his fly.

An upward glance. A raised eyebrow. There was still caution there, asking instead of taking, when deep down they both knew such courtesy was unnecessary.

“Yeah…” Chris nodded, stroking Josh’s thigh. It was definitely _totally_ okay.

Raised hips aided impatient hands as they tugged at unwanted denim. Some shuffling and shifting later, and Chris was sitting on the edge of the bed with his jeans pooled around his ankles, garish boxer shorts doing little to disguise his blatant need. A soft gust of amusement escaped Josh’s lips, but it wasn’t unkind and Chris joined him in it, giving Josh a devil may care shrug, delivered less casually than he'd normally manage to muster.

It soon became clear that Josh’s interest lay elsewhere when he settled on his knees at Chris's feet. Though laughter still danced in his eyes, he spoke in no uncertain terms. “Off.”

Chris blinked down at him. So, this was how it was, huh? He didn't always make an appearance, but this assertive, almost feisty incarnation of Josh Washington was a welcome visitor to this particular scenario.

“Now?” Josh was smiling, eyes trailing up Chris's body till he met his gaze.

Chris didn't need to be told again.

“You're the boss.” he managed, hooking his thumbs under his waistband. A moment later more material was bunched around his feet and Josh was looking at him like he'd just unwrapped a Christmas present.

_A Christmas present they wanna bone, maybe..._

The brunette’s amusement quickly gave way to a very different set of emotions, poorly disguised lust colouring his features, his intentions clearly written on his face. Looking up at Chris through a lascivious haze, Josh wet his palm with his tongue. A moment later, Chris closed his eyes and tilted his head back to face the ceiling, biting back a curse as Josh steadied himself on his thigh and a warm, wet mouth took him in without hesitation.

If there was one thing Chris had learned about Josh, it was that trying to anticipate what he would and wouldn’t do was a bit of a lost cause. Sure, he felt confident reading the other man, interpreting his actions and knowing how they translated into his state of mind. A decade of knowing him had given him that particular skill. But this side of Josh was still something of a mystery. He was slowly learning the signs - those seemingly innocent touches that lasted a little longer, the lingering shifts in his gaze and the subtle change in tone - but predicting what might trigger such a change in mood was like trying to guess when lightning would strike. So, he’d given up trying and sat back to enjoy the ride, and quickly discovered that it didn’t disappoint. Sure, he was happy to initiate things, but those times when Josh was the one to catch him off guard with his impulses and urges… 

His mind wandered to a hideously early morning miles away, both of them wet beneath the stream of running water, slick shower tiles cold against his back.

Chris opened his eyes and looked down, pulling back his t-shirt just enough to see Josh kneeling between his legs, eyes half-closed in quiet concentration. The blonde’s brow creased as he exhaled through pursed lips.

They’d gone for a shower before class. It was Josh’s idea, when he thought back on it. The possibility of something more than just a shower had crossed his mind, but Chris still somehow hadn’t anticipated it. The pattering of warm water echoing off the tiles. Damp hands in wet hair. And all the while, Josh there by his feet, looking exactly like he did right now: quiet and focused while the floor tiles pressed crisscross patterns into his knees.

“Nn... You look so hot right now.” he murmured, trailing fingers through short brown hair.

The compliment was rewarded with a soft hum of acknowledgement and an agonisingly slow, deliberate movement that caused the tip of Josh’s nose to brush against his skin, coaxing a rare curse from him.

~*~

A flash of dark eyes caught the soft exclamation before they closed again, and if Josh could have smiled he would have. Tense yet gentle fingers ran through his hair, stopping to cradle the base of his skull while he lavished his attention on the blonde, slowly working Chris with his hand and mouth.

Right now this was all about Chris, and that’s just the way he wanted it. Okay, so maybe it was a _little_ bit about him, too. He definitely couldn't say he wasn’t getting off on it. Far from it. It was only now, kneeling on the bedroom floor with the blonde looking down at him, that Josh allowed himself to slow the pace, taking his time, savouring every little sound Chris made.

Another mumbled exclamation accompanied the hand gripping his shoulder. “J…”

It was quiet - nearly inaudible between small huffs of unsteady breath - but Josh didn’t miss the whispered warning. But he didn’t stop. At least, not until Chris’s fingers tightened with a little more urgency, his thumb rubbing a firm line along Josh’s collarbone. A part of him wanted to carry on, to feel him tense and pulse, but another part of him - a selfish part - had other ideas.

He leaned back, one hand dragging across his mouth as Chris stared down at him wearing a confused expression that would have been comical were it not for the desperation knitting his brow and the shallow rise and fall of his chest beneath his t-shirt. “J?”

Josh pushed himself up from Chris’s thighs, stooping to steal a kiss from the baffled blonde before getting fully to his feet to dispense with his t-shirt.

He wanted him. It was that simple.

~*~

At first, Chris’s sex-addled brain hadn’t known what the hell was going on and formed confused, disappointed thoughts on instinct, but when J began unzipping his jeans, a little clarity cut through the fog.

_Oh…_

Okay, he could see where this was going and had every intention of letting it play out, except… A nagging thought. It had crossed his mind ever so briefly earlier, but he’d ignored it till now, the unfolding situation getting the better of him.

“I didn’t…” he trailed off distractedly as Josh stepped out of his jeans before remembering himself, “I didn’t bring anything.”

It hadn’t even occurred to him that he’d need to and it was a hard thing to admit when he was all too ready to pull the brunette down onto his lap. They were heading home, after all, and he’d naively thought he’d be back at his parents’ place by now. A night shacked up in Josh’s room hadn’t even been on the cards as far as he was concerned. For the briefest of moments a desperate part of him thought to suggest asking the twins, but the notion was dismissed instantly. That was a conversation nobody involved needed.

Josh crouched down beside the bed and unzipped his backpack. A moment later, he chucked something over to the bed and its soft weight landed on the blanket beside Chris. He wore a self-assured smile as he stood up to lean against the wall with one hand while he pulled off a sock with the other, “I told you, I got this.”

The old travel wash bag - an unassuming grey thing with a stubborn zip - was originally a temporary measure, but over time it had become a permanent presence in their dorm room, taking on the duty of keeping condoms and a shyly purchased bottle of lube in one place. It was hardly a sordid thing, containing nothing more adventurous than that, more practical and organised than anything else, which was strange considering the two men it belonged to were often anything but. It hadn’t even occurred to Chris to pack it. But Josh had. And Chris wasn’t exactly disappointed about that.

Chris struggled with the zip as Josh's other sock joined its mate on the floor. It opened halfway before getting stuck, but it was open wide enough for prying fingers to delve inside. Foil wrapper in hand, Chris’s mind was racing forward to a myriad of possibilities, all of them good, all of them making him wish Josh would hurry back to him. He went to tear the wrapper.

“Wait.”

Chris looked up, hands stilling at the request.

Josh was standing over him, stripped to his underwear without a hint of self-consciousness, far too focused on Chris to be worried about petty embarrassment or shyness. He took the wrapper from between Chris’s fingers while he drank in the sight of the blonde before him, naked from the waist down, his hair askew with the faintest flush to his cheeks.

It was then that Chris realised what he had in mind, and the welcome revelation parted his lips and hitched his eyebrows up a little higher.

Josh went to say something… then faltered like a stalling car, perhaps misinterpreting Chris's reaction. He ventured a smile but it had an unsure edge to it. Looking away momentarily, his mouth formed the beginning of an ill-defined word, but still nothing came, and Chris didn't miss the briefest of self-directed frowns, chased quickly by a soft, slightly lost look, made hazy by internal conflict. He’d hit a wall and was overthinking things again, that much was obvious, but it was strange for self-doubt to follow so quickly on the heels of such confidence. Chewing his lip, the brunette managed a lopsided smile. Finally, soft words found him. “If you don't want--”

Chris held Josh's hands firmly in his own, cutting the sentence short. With gentle coaxing, he pulled Josh closer, hating the distance between them. “Relax...” he looked up into uncertain eyes and huffed laughter through a ragged smile, both amused and perplexed by how Josh could doubt exactly how on board he was. Surely it was pretty obvious? Nonetheless, he said the words the other man needed to hear, “I want to.” his eyes widened, “ _A lot_ , okay?”

_You have no idea how much._

Chris silenced any remaining doubt with reassuring lips and the simple act was everything Josh needed right then. 

~*~

Chris's bare chest rose and fell with shallow breaths beneath his own. His lips were parted, one hand holding Josh’s shoulder while the brunette rocked into the other.

The bag and its contents had gone forgotten for a while, lost somewhere among the soft folds of the blanket. It was only when the urge became too strong - until it was all he could think about - that Josh sought it out. Returning to settle in the welcome space between Chris’s legs, a plastic cap clicked open then fell away, landing on the bedding without a sound. Careful fingers, cool and slick, prompted a sharp intake of breath from the blonde, and his back arched slightly on instinct, “Man…” Chris swallowed, "That shit is cold.”

“Uh-huh...” the comment went mainly ignored, Josh’s focus on the task at hand garnering all his attention. 

Man, he was pretty like this. How had he not known this before? It seemed crazy that he somehow hadn't always known this about Chris; how good he looked and felt and tasted. Chris wasn’t like Josh thought he’d be, back when guilty one-sided thoughts were all he had to go on. He had a vivid imagination, but even he couldn’t have conjured up something so damn perfect lying beneath him; all tousled hair, kiss-bruised lips and warm, soft skin in the dim light.

Splayed fingers stroked along Chris’s side and chest, following the lines of his body while Chris looked up at him hazy-eyed, rubbing urgent patterns on his arm as he leaned into his touch, pressing back against wet fingers. Yeah, he was pretty like this; aching and restless...

_...And mine._

No matter how much Josh touched him it didn't seem like nearly enough.

Growing impatient, Josh tended to himself while Chris waited, the younger man just as eager if the way his hand trailed across his stomach to touch himself was anything to go by. Torn foil, thorough strokes in a lube-slick palm, and Josh was looking down at him again, fighting the urge to succumb to his own touch. 

It wasn’t the first time their roles had been reversed. Josh had thought about it before then, but not because he disliked the status quo. There was an element of the unknown there - of satisfying his curiosity. And yes, okay, maybe he did on some level just want to fuck him. Fine, there was that. Who could blame him? But there was so much more to it than that. Above all else, he wanted Chris to feel what he felt. 

Chris agreed without hesitation, much to his surprise, trusting him implicitly. That first time… thinking back on it was guaranteed to get his blood up, doing the job on those rare occasions Josh found himself alone with an itch that needed scratching. Chris had taken to it with such enthusiasm, working Josh up so much and spurring him on till it was hard to hold back. Neither of them lasted long, emerging wide-eyed but pleasantly surprised from what turned out to be a revelatory experience. 

Josh wiped his hand absently on the blanket as he nestled between the warmth of Chris's thighs. Gathering up Chris's leg, its weight warm and solid against his waist, Josh licked dry lips. “Say it.”

These were words for the bedroom, uttered by that primal part of him that sometimes made him cringe when he thought back on it, but in the heat of the moment it felt right. He wanted to hear it, just like all the other times, and the anticipation had him leaning close enough to feel Chris's breath against his skin.

Chris knew what he wanted and the confession came without hesitation in one quick breath, yet none of the familiar humour clung to Chris's words, murmured with breathy conviction. “Want you.”

And fuck, if Josh didn’t want him too.

The random playlist of songs did little to mask the groan that accompanied that first slow movement of his hips. Buried deep, Josh stilled, not quite trusting himself to do much more than that, savouring the moment as hands gripped his back. His lips brushed against Chris's as his eyes closed of their own accord.

_Fuck..._

It was just like the first time, except he knew what to expect. Yet, somehow that knowledge still didn't prepare him for it. Chris shifted restlessly beneath him as his fingers made white lines on Josh's skin, “PleasemoveJ…”

The request was impossible to refuse.

Thick, strong thighs gripped Josh’s sides and the heels of Chris’s feet dug into his back as he obliged, rolling his hips as he kissed the blonde, each slow, drawn-out movement coaxing delicious sounds from the man beneath him, barely muffled by their meeting lips. Eventually Josh leaned back, stroking fingers through blonde hair as he found his stride.

He’d learned early on that he liked to see Chris's face. There was something gratifying about witnessing the change in eyes he knew so well, the usual smile peeling back to reveal something raw and unfiltered for his eyes only. That counted double when Chris was like this: pressed back against the pillows, panting, spread ready and willing.

Their time together, in physical terms, had been a massive learning curve, but none of it had been entirely unexpected. Nothing except this. This was the side of Chris that had surprised him the most; the lost, breathless, tumultuous side of the blonde that surfaced when Josh was inside him. A part of him still couldn’t quite believe he was somehow responsible for it.

Possessive hands pulled him close enough to feel Chris hard against his stomach. “Unh… _Mmmh_ …”

Chris was being loud. Too loud. Normally Josh would've welcomed it, but maybe their neighbours wouldn't be quite so appreciative if they could hear through the walls.

“Sh.. shhh…”

It was perhaps a little unfair to simultaneously shush _and_ fuck Chris, sending out mixed signals for sure. It definitely wasn't helping the situation, but he sure as hell wasn't going to stop anytime soon. Chris's hands smoothed down to his backside, urging Josh against him with each thrust. Surrendering to the instruction, he buried his face in Chris's neck.

“Nnh.. _Ssshhhh_..” he murmured against hot skin, his forehead pressed to the pillow, but the effort was unconvincing and the weak protest went ignored.

He was being way too loud. They both were.

Josh's mouth made soundless shapes against Chris's neck while he held the blonde's hip down, gritting his teeth as he pushed up more forcefully into tight heat.

_“Aah…”_

That was loud. Definitely too loud. But that didn't stop Josh doing it again. And again. And again...

Chris’s breath was hot and ragged against his palm as he tried to quieten him, but sound still managed to escape from between Josh’s fingers. And still he didn't stop; not now Chris was mumbling all kinds of incoherent shit that only encouraged the gradually increasing pace and force of Josh's hips. Usually Chris was the one who found the right words to say: humorous, reassuring murmurs that put his mind at ease. But when he was like this, he could barely string a sentence together.

When the attempt proved futile, Josh's hand slipped from Chris’s face to hold him by the arm, pinning his wrist to the pillow above his head while hungry lips and teeth worked their way along the younger man's jaw.

“Joh… Juh.. ssh… _Mmmmh_ …”

Josh kissed him again, hard this time, and for a while he was too wrapped up in the younger man’s body to care about the noise. It was only when the bed frame began to voice its protest that he slowed to a reluctant halt, leaving the blonde to shift and twitch beneath him.

“Turn… turn over or shut up.” It was said through a desperate smile, but there was no irritation in the words, mainly because Josh really, _really_ didn’t actually want him to shut up. But with only a thin wall between them and his siblings, he didn’t have much say in the matter.

Chris seemed to consider the two options, longing and feverish deliberation marking his brow. Josh couldn’t resist pushing up into him one more time, screwing the blonde’s eyes shut as he demonstrated that shutting up probably wasn’t a viable option. Chris pulled him close and pressed his hands to Josh’s cheeks as he stole a long, lingering kiss. When the brunette came up for air, Chris managed a shaky nod.

It didn’t take long for them to rearrange themselves. Before he knew it, Chris was lying against the mattress looking up at Josh over his shoulder while he spread the blonde’s legs farther apart with his knees. A moment later, Josh managed to screw his eyes shut again for him.

Okay, so he liked seeing Chris’s face, which was now half-buried in a pillow and going some way toward keeping the noise down, but this was good too. _Really_ good.

Chris was a little self-conscious about his body. Josh knew it though he'd never mention it, partly because he didn't want it to be a thing, but mainly because Chris really didn't need to be. Perhaps it was difficult for the blonde to see it - he was a humble guy - but he was damn near perfect in Josh's opinion. Seeing him naked for the first time had opened his eyes to that. Neither of them were athletes, that much was obvious, but a lot could be said for the blonde's strong arms and thighs, buzzing eyes and the broad expanse of chest that Josh's hands could never get enough of. And it was all on display, laid out before him.

Broad shoulders tensed, dormant muscle flexing beneath hot skin. Josh gripped Chris's hips, struggling to be quiet as his hand smoothed down along the curves of a taut buttock: another of Chris's prize attributes that certainly enhanced the view. 

He wanted to say something, to tell Chris everything he was thinking and feeling, but all he could manage was the weak beginnings of a dying sentence. “Chr…”

And suddenly he didn’t seem to be the one calling the shots anymore. Chris was pushing back against him, meeting everything he threw at the blonde until Josh stilled altogether, kneeling in place while Chris, lying prone on the bed, pushed up to meet him, his aching body rubbing against the bedding beneath him with each buck of his hips. Josh's mouth hung open as he leaned back and held Chris's ankles to steady himself. 

Chris was panting into the pillow with a bunched up handful of duvet in one hand and a fistful of blonde hair in the other, his body working overtime. Josh looked down to watch their bodies meet. “Hohfuck… fuh…”

He needed to slow down. He needed to slow… slow down or…

Firm hands pushed down on the small of Chris's back in an effort to regain control, but it was difficult when every little movement and sound was driving him closer to the inevitable. Pressing his chest to Chris’s back and kissing the space between his shoulder blades, Josh loosened the younger man's grip on the bedding, guiding his hand beneath his body. “Do it.”

And he did. Leaning back to hold the younger man in place, Josh saw the telltale movement of Chris's arm as it mimicked the frenetic rhythm of his own body. He tried to steady himself, to slow down the pace. That was, until Chris turned his face enough to utter the first coherent thing he'd said in a while: an urgently spoken word between shallow breaths that said so much. “ _There_.”

It was a small miracle Josh didn't give in right then, his resolve nearly broken by that simple word. It was only his desire to get Chris where he needed to go, to keep on hearing the increasingly urgent sounds Chris was trying so hard to stifle, that kept it from claiming him.

Too loud. Fuck, this was all.. this was… way too...

He went to shush Chris again, but realised belatedly that the blonde's face was now buried in the crook of his arm. _He_ was the one making those sounds. It was then that Josh came to the liberating conclusion that he officially didn't care anymore.

His hand did little to support him, pressed against the wall, lube-slick fingers against an old movie poster denying him purchase. Instinctively, he leaned down to wrap his arms around the younger man's chest, pressing his forehead against the back of Chris's neck, desperate to be close to him, to touch him, to...

_My boyf.. my boyfriend is…_

There was nothing he could do to convince himself to hold out any longer, not with Chris's face buried in the pillow, his body tensing and tightening around him while the bedding did little to muffle his low groan. Josh managed a few more desperate thrusts before he succumbed to the blonde beneath him, ignorant of his own ragged moan as he came too.

~*~

Distant music cut through the fog, along with the sound of laboured breath and the fast staccato beat of his own pulse.

Something was on his back. Belatedly Josh identified the culprit. He shrugged off the fallen poster and flung it on the floor, not caring where it went.

For a while Josh stayed there, content to feel the rise and fall of Chris's body beneath his own, until the need to move outweighed the desire to stay. Placing a cluster of kisses between the blonde's shoulders, he carefully moved to sit on the edge of the bed, dealing with the aftermath while his breath evened out.

Chris, spread out face down on the bed, made a vague humming sort of sound behind him as he straightened out his legs, unable to do much else.

“You okay?”

“I think… I ruined your…” he trailed off into an indistinct mumble, muffled by the pillow.

That was another thing Josh had learned. Usually Chris was attentive and had his head on straight enough to at least manage something as simple as talking afterwards, but at times like this he was pretty useless. But Josh didn't care at all. It was a very small price to pay in the grand scheme of things and was, in a weird way, rather endearing.

His mother had left a pile of freshly laundered clothes on his bed, which he'd moved to the floor some hours ago. Luckily, a few clean towels had made it onto the stack. Josh handed one to Chris and was met with a mumbled string of words in response. Josh smiled to himself as clumsy fingers took it from him.

“You sure you're okay, man?” he asked again, a little amused as he stroked Chris's back.

“Yeah, m’just… mmm…”

Josh scanned the floor and sought out his underwear from among the discarded garments littering the carpet, while Chris did a half-hearted job of cleaning himself up. After some lacklustre searching, Josh felt a hand on his waist. Chris was lying on his back now, his features made sleepy yet happy by a pleasant lethargy, the hand towel draped across his crotch affording him a modicum of modesty. “C’mere.”

Chris took Josh by the wrist, coaxing him back to bed without complaint, where the brunette soon found himself in a tight embrace beneath the duvet, the ‘ruined’ blanket having been kicked away to form a tangled mess on the floor. With his head nestled against Josh's neck and a possessive arm slung lazily around the brunette's chest, Chris sighed contentedly. Josh smiled to himself. Chris was still a little messed up, but he certainly had his priorities straight.

A while passed in easy silence. Josh stared up at the ceiling thinking absent thoughts.

“They probably heard that, right?”

“Hmm…” Chris opened his eyes and a slight smile tugged at his lips, “Yeah, probably.”

There was no point worrying about it. It was hard to worry about anything right now anyway. His mind drifted again while he stroked Chris's arm.

They'd never slept together in a double bed before. That was strange, right? Not that he was complaining. It was a good excuse to get close, like they were right now, with little space either side of them and Chris half-draped across him. They'd managed well enough so far, back in their dorm room. 

Another thought sprang to mind.

“Hey.”

“Hmm?” Chris's eyes opened again.

“D’you think you'd like me if we met now?” His fingers ran absently through blonde hair, “At college.” he clarified. 

Chris blinked a few times as he considered it. “Yeah. M’sure I would.” he ran a lazy hand along Josh’s side and chuckled to himself, “Look at you, man.”

With a thoughtful smile, Josh pulled the duvet up a little higher. Tilting his head to the side, he looked at Chris, who in turn looked back up at him. Chris placed a kiss on his chest as his fingers trailed reassuring circles on Josh’s waist, “What's up?”

“Nothing… just…”

He was used to meeting Chris’s gaze through clear lenses. Without that barrier, the exchange seemed more intimate, especially this close, like he was looking at someone who only existed behind closed doors.

The arm around him tightened reassuringly. “Just what?”

“Thanks. For today.”

Chris gave him a questioning look, “Dude, I didn't do anything.” his smile gained some strength, “That was all you.”

But he had, whether he knew it or not. Perhaps he was just being modest about it, but Josh couldn't have made the journey home alone. Without Chris there beside him the idea had seemed impossible. But Chris was always there, when he never had to be. Josh hadn't even needed to ask. He never did.

Josh shifted beneath Chris's arm and rolled onto his side to face him. The blonde gave him another soft smile and closed his eyes as he gently pulled Josh against him, gathering him up and renewing his hold on the other man.

“Chris?”

“Yes, Josh?” Chris replied with his eyes still closed, amused and clearly making fun of the rare use of his name.

“I..” Josh swallowed and took a breath, “I love you.”

And just like that, the laughter died. Sleepy eyes flicked open, looking back at him with renewed focus, a warm expression of disbelief parting Chris's lips, as if he didn't think he'd quite heard him properly. “...Yeah?”

Josh hadn't said it before. He'd certainly felt it, but saying it had seemed daunting, even in the wake of Chris's own declaration which had been given to him so easily. But Chris hadn't pushed for it, or been outwardly worried by the lack of reciprocation. He'd understood, like he always did.

Josh nodded, stroking the younger man's back.

If he thought Chris had a hold on him before, it was nothing compared to the hug he found himself in now. He caught a fleeting glimpse of a grin borne from unadulterated happiness before Chris's arms bundled him up, threatening to squeeze the life from him, but he didn't make any attempt to move. “You’re not just saying that ‘cause I put out, right?”

Chris's breath was warm against his ear and tickled Josh's skin as his own soft sound of relief prompted a chuckle from the blonde.

This was why. This was exactly why. There were so many reasons why he loved him, and this was one of them.

Chris loosened his arms just enough to look back at him from along the stretch of pillow. The grin softened, but a deep affection warmed Chris's eyes. “I love you too, man.”

He’d said it before, but Josh would never grow tired of hearing it.

Any thoughts about noise, or neighbours or anything beyond the confines of those four walls, beyond the duvet, for that matter, went forgotten when Chris's lips found his own, gently coaxing him onto his back. With his reassuring weight upon him, nothing else mattered.

~*~

“Josh?”

Nope. Too early. Way too early to be dealing with whatever that was.

“Josh? Are you up?”

Josh blinked reluctantly. For a moment he thought he was in his dorm room, what with Chris pressed up behind him, snoring softly against his neck, but that wasn't right.

The voice was coming from outside the room. It sounded like his mom, or maybe one of his sisters, it was difficult to tell. Still struggling to focus, he raised his head to look at the door. The hockey stick was still in place, separated from the warm haven of bedding by a trail of discarded clothes.

“Yeah m’up.” he replied unconvincingly.

“Hannah says Sam's on her way over.”

Sam. He'd almost forgotten that he and Chris weren't the only ones coming home for the long weekend.

“Can I come in?” The request was followed by an unsuccessful attempt to turn the door handle. Concern crept into the voice outside, “Josh? Are you okay? What's blocking the door?”

It was just the wakeup call his body needed. He sat bolt upright. “Waitaminute I'm up!”

And still the handle jiggled. Scrabbling on the ground, Josh hurriedly located his underwear and stepped into it, nearly tripping over as he crossed the room. He was by the door when the stick fell loose, inching the door open just enough for Josh to catch a glimpse of his mother's shocked expression before he slammed it shut on her.

“Josh!”

“Sorry! Just… five minutes, okay?”

He was definitely awake now.

Josh pressed his forehead against the door while he listened for retreating footsteps, but he didn't hear any. “...Sorry, mom. Five minutes?” he exhaled relief when the door handle remained still.

“Fine, five minutes. I left you some fresh clothes.”

Some of said laundry was now by his feet, mixed up with their clothes from the day before. Rosa wasn’t going to be best pleased. “Uh-huh.”

There was a slight pause before she added, “The girls said Chris is here.”

Well, _fuck_.

Still pressed to the door, Josh looked over his shoulder. Chris was awake with the duvet pulled up around his waist. They looked at each other cluelessly as Josh searched for a response, unsure of what to say to that.

“...Morning, Mrs W.” came the eventual sheepish reply. Josh winced as Chris shrugged, mouthing ‘I don't know!’

“Morning.” she replied cheerily, “I told Jackie you were here. Breakfast is laid out downstairs if you're hungry.”

Josh's forehead rubbed against the door as he shook his head, his eyes closing with mortification. His voice was strained but he managed to speak. “...Thanks, mom.”

When he heard her walk away, Josh turned to lean back against the door and was met with amused chuckling. “Bro…”

“Aw _man_.” Josh ran his fingers through his hair, “What the hell?” 

Chris beckoned him back to the bed and Josh obediently sat down heavily beside him with a lingering embarrassment colouring his cheeks that even a kiss to the temple couldn't quite dispel.

“It'll be _fine_.”

“Yeah...” Josh conceded, flopping down backwards across Chris's lap.

Chris sat up to peer down at him, still very much amused by his boyfriend's embarrassment. Slowly but surely, he managed to coax a smile from Josh, his own proving contagious.

“Yeah, I know.” Josh replied with a little more conviction. And looking up at Chris, he was certain of it.

Almost.

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: [@messofcurls-creative](https://messofcurls-creative.tumblr.com/)


End file.
